However, some Calvinists teach that a man cannot even repent until after God saves him. This is not true. A man cannot repent unless God enables him to repent, but neither can a man take a breath of air unless God enables him. Jesus said, "Apart from Me you can do nothing" (Jn. 15:5). In the early Church some of the brethren said, "God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life" (Acts 11:18). Later, Paul wrote, "The sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death" (2 Cor. 7:10).

Also, Calvinists wrongly teach that man has no freewill, whatsoever. The truth is that an unsaved person has the freewill to choose anything and everything except God. After a person is saved, he or she has the free will to choose anything and everything including God, which enables one to also reject Christ and to choose to no longer obey Him or to abide in Him.

In all cases, His mercy and saving of a relative few is not based, in any way whatsoever, on any merit of the ones saved.

"He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will...In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose" (Eph. 1:5-11).

"I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion. So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy...So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens who He desires" (Rom. 9:15-18).

"To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God" (Jn. 1:12-13).

"By grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Eph. 2:8-9).

Grace is the God-given desire and power to do His will. Saving faith also is given by God to those whom He chose to save. Faith is the knowledge of God’s will (which, concerning salvation, is to repent and turn to Christ).

Calvinists do not even deal with the above scripture that clearly refutes their lie, and they try to create a straw man by saying "all" does not mean "all" or that "all" means only "all of the elect," and that "the world" means "the world of the elect" and other such nonsense.

Some of these verses are: "All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him" (Isaiah 53:6), "He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them..." (2 Cor. 4:15), "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son..." (Jn. 3:16), "But we see Jesus...crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone" (Heb. 2:9), "There is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all" (1 Tim. 2:5-6), "He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only ours but also for the sins of the whole world" (1 Jn. 2:2), et al.

"To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God" (Jn. 1:12-13).

Jesus said, "You did not choose Me but I chose you" (Jn. 15:16). "I chose you out of the world" (Jn. 15:19).

This teaching is also known as "Unconditional Eternal Security" and "Once-Saved-Always-Saved." Since this false teaching is all-important, with likely eternal consequences, unlike the other four points of Calvin’s TULIP and because this false teaching is believed by many Christians who do not necessarily identify themselves as Calvinists, more space will be given to the refutation of this heresy.

While it is indeed true that we are eternally secure in Christ, this security is not unconditional.

We have no reason to believe that Adam would not still be alive today, 6,000 years later, if he had not disobeyed God. God warned the first man that if he disobeyed, he would surely die (spiritually) that very day.

Adam committed spiritual suicide and forfeited his free gift of eternal life. He knowingly and willfully disobeyed God, after the stark warning from Him who, among other things, is Love.

Esau forfeited his birthright, which depicts our inheritance through Christ. He did this for a single meal to satisfy his flesh. Even though he sought reinstatement with tears, it was to no avail. His destiny was sealed by his own choice.

"The Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons" (1 Tim. 4:1). This verse is speaking of true Christians because people who have never been saved never have had "the faith" from which to fall away.

Jesus said if we abide in Him, He will abide in us. It would be nonsensical for our Lord to make this conditional promise, if it was impossible for us to not abide in Him. Likewise, Jesus warned that he who overcomes during the Great Tribulation will not have his name erased from the Book of Life (Rev. 3:5).

Those whose names are in the Book of Life, have been given eternal life. Those names of Christians that are in the Book of Life (who enter the Great Tribulation) will remain in the Book, if he or she is an overcomer during that most terrible time. It would be nonsensical and defy rational thinking to believe that Christ would warn us about our name being blotted out of the Book of Life if that was impossible.

God broke off the natural branches (Jews) for their disobedience and unbelief. He solemnly warns us (Christians) to fear being conceited about our security in Christ. He said that those (Christians) who fall away and do not continue in the kindness of God, will also be cut off (Rom. 11:19-22).

In A.D. 95, just one generation removed from the Day of Pentecost, Jesus adamantly warned the Christians in Laodecia, who were in Him, that if they did not repent of their lukewarmness He would vomit them out (Rev. 3:16).

Those Christians, like lukewarm Christians today, made our Lord sick to His stomach. Our loving Lord sharply rebuked those Christians and said they were "wretched" (Rev. 3:17). They were about to forfeit their salvation, not because they were cold Christians, but merely because they were lukewarm.

Jesus said if you deny Him, He will deny you before the Father in heaven. It would make no sense, at all, for Jesus to give this dire warning if it was impossible to deny Him. And, as if this warning being recorded once in Holy Writ was not enough, Jesus had this included by the inspired writers at least four times in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and 2 Timothy.

Jesus included the distinctive conditional "if" in His promise of eternal security, and that depends on our choosing to obey and abide (remain) in Him. And, indeed, we have the grace to make that choice. God gives us the grace to make choices, but we have to make the choices, and we can, indeed, choose to disobey Him.

Jesus said if you deny Him He will deny you (Mat. 10:33; Mk. 8:38; 2 Tim. 2:12). Jesus said if we remain in Him and if we obey His commands we will remain in His love. Clearly, the promise is conditional. Clearly, if we, as Christians, continue to disobey His commands without repenting and confessing our sin (1 Jn. 1:9) at some point we will be vomited out of Him. Clearly, after we are born again and are in Him, the choice is ours.

We can thank our Lord and Savior that we have eternal security, but it is not unconditional.

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